Hello, and thanks in advance. I live in Northern Alberta and I currently have a mature (Not sure of Age it's around 30' tall) White birch in my front yard. Up until recently this tree has come in full and is quite beautiful. This year however, it is rather sparse. Some branches that were full of leaves, don't seem to be growing. These are large branches as well (6" - 1' in diameter). I looked for signs of Borers, and I can't find any, however there is quite a bit of damage from Sap Suckers. Also on couple of the dead branches the bark has started to turn black.

Over the last two years I've started really trying to get my lawn to grow in better through use of thatching, aeration, and fertilizer. Could this cause issues with this tree? I would much rather have a health tree, than a healthy lawn.

This year, it got warm really early, and today the temp actually got close to 30 degrees C.

Maybe the tree isn't getting enough water, so I was thinking perhaps if a person installed a drip hose about 18 - 24" down under ground around the drip line, if this would help this tree survive? I love this tree and it's one of the main reasons I bought the house I live in. I also have two very large elm trees in my back yard that are about the same height, and they are doing very well.

Thanks again, and any help would be greatly appreciated.